Zenbook Prime Touch Windows 8 Clean Install

Hello everyone,

I've just got myself a Zenbook Prime Touch (UX31A-BHI5T11, the Best Buy exclusive). What I'd like to do is:

1. Backup everything that originally comes on the SSD drive, so that I can restore it later (just in case).

2. Wipe the SSD, repartition to get rid of the recovery area, only keeping the hibernation partition ("Rapid Start"), and allocating all the other space to a single NTFS partition.

3. Install fresh vanilla OEM Windows 8 that matches the licence for the laptop.

4. Install the latest drivers, and minimal Asus bloatware (only what is necessary or remotely useful).

So far I've completed most of Step 4: I've downloaded all the latest drivers from Asus, and even newer versions from Intel and Realtek, but I'm unsure how to accomplish Steps 1-3. On a laptop with a removable drive, I could just connect it to another computer, but that's not the option here. I'm also not sure how to go about the Windows 8 OEM installation.

Any advice is most welcome (and so are comments, especially if you think what I'm planning is not a good thing to do).

I apologize in advance if this was discussed before, but I could not find anything about Windows 8. I'd appreciate if you could point me in the right direction. Here's a similar thread but for Windows 7: Asus UX31A Fresh Install Guide

 

Hey 31336,

1. You can either simply copy and paste everything on to a backup medium (disc, USB drive, external drive, etc.) or you can use imaging/cloning software to make an image of your drive, which you can clone to the new drive (you can use software such as Clonezilla for cloning).

2. I'm guessing you mean format the drive? Wiping terminology entails a very in-depth method of eradicating data. To format it, just use the Windows installation. You can format each partition and even delete partitions using the Windows installer.

3. For this, you just need matching installation media. Example: You have Windows 8 64 bit. You will need Windows 8 64 bit installation media, regardless of whether you run it off a USB drive or a disc. You can purchase a .iso from Microsoft and burn it to a disc or use the Windows 7 USB tool to apply it to a USB drive. Or, if you or someone you know has a MSDN account, you should be able to download it there.

Hope that helps.

 

Hey Prostar,

Thanks for answering, and for the suggestions!

Step 1 (Backup):

I'm thinking to:

• Install a virtual DVD-RW drive (Question 0: Can someone recommend a tool to do this, preferably freeware?)
• Use Asus' AI Recovery to save the DVD images to that drive.
• Copy the resulting .iso files and store them off the computer.

Question 1: Am I correct to think that running the AI Recovery DVDs later would (a) recreate the original partition layout, including the recovery partition? Or does it just (b) restore Windows and bloatware, and the recovery partition is gone forever? If (b), then I'd prefer to find another backup option first.

Step 2 (Repartitioning):

I was just thinking of zeroing the drive with DBAN, which I'd usually do, but that might be a little excessive (and possibly fruitless, considering it's an SSD with wear levelling). I can probably just use Windows Installer's partitioning tool to remove all partitions first.

Question 2: The tricky part (for me) is at which point (and how) do I create the "Rapid Start" (hibernation) partition. This guide linked from this thread says it's enough to shrink the OS partition after the system is installed. Is there some (performance) penalty to this? Would it be better to create this partition at the time of installation? Any suggestions here?

Step 3 (Installing Windows):

Question 3: To reinstall Windows 8, can I just re-use the files that exist somewhere on the recovery partition? (i.e. is there an installation copy "hidden" there?) Or do I need to obtain the installation files separately?

Question 4: Could someone kindly point me in the direction of a Windows 8 reinstallation guide (how to back up OEM information, flash drive setup, etc.). I know such a thing must exist somewhere. I've never used Windows 8 before, and it seems some things have changed since the previous version.

A lot of questions. Thank you for your patience with me. :hi2:

 

Hey again, 31336!

1. Asus AI Recovery Burner does not currently work with Windows 8. Only alternative to a recovery backup is to actually image the entire drive with the recovery partition still intact (just fyi). The recovery process only restores Windows to my knowledge, which is why - even Asus has confirmed this with me - that the only way to backup that partition is to clone the entire drive. Your method of backup won't work the way you'd like to, either; copying .iso will only copy the file itself. You need to use a program to extract the contents of the image file for burning, and since the AI Recovery Burner doesn't work under Windows 8, well...

2. Yes, that's excessive, haha, especially on a new drive. Basically, the hibernation partition should be at least equal to the amount of system memory you have. There's no performance hit from having the partition, you'll just have that space reserved, so you can't save anything to it. If you intend on using hibernation, then by all means: create it when you do your Windows installation.

3. No hidden Windows 8 installation there. It's just a factory image. You'll need your own installation media.

There are a few guides, but here's one real quick before I take off for the weekend: How To Clean Install Windows 8 (Part 1 of 2)

Or this (install w/ license only link at end of article): How to Do a Clean Install of Windows 8 with an Upgrade Disc